Third season of summer means storm worries

We have five seasons on the Gulf Coast. Three of them are summer. The other two are “summer’s finally over” and “it’s almost summer.”

Projected tracks of the latest tropical disturbance on the Weather Underground website.

It’s the middle of August, a time when school doors reopen and we all start watching a storm in the Gulf.

Either way, this is the time when the seasons change. We have five seasons on the Gulf Coast. Three of them are summer. The other two are “summer’s finally over” and “it’s almost summer.”

The first summer is more like what most of the country experiences. The days start to turn hot and the nights are less cool. I’ve heard this called “American summer.”

This form of summer starts in early April and extends to about June.

After that comes what is sometimes called “Gulf summer,” or “welcome to the tropics.” I’ve heard a few other names for it, but most can’t be repeated in a family newspaper.

This is the time of year when the lows are around the middle 80s, the highs in the 90s and the humidity reaches the point that you wouldn’t be surprised to see minnows darting about above the water.

A few years ago, I was leaving the airport in New Orleans in late July. A middle-aged couple was carrying luggage and accompanied by a woman in her early 20s. It appeared that the young woman was their daughter whom they were visiting.

I could hear the mother comment that it was unusual that the airport wasn’t air-conditioned.

“This is air-conditioned,” the daughter replied.

At about that moment, the terminal doors slid open and everyone stepped outside into the tropical weather that is a Gulf summer. “Oh my,” the mother said in a subdued voice.

When the air even without wind, has a physical presence, a weight that hits you, it’s the good old summertime on the Gulf Coast.

I’ve noticed that we don’t hear as many people talk about celebrating Independence Day with a barbecue. Standing outside next to a pile of burning coals in July isn’t what some Gulf residents consider fun.

The temperature is oppressive enough that you don’t have the energy to even try to kill the 10th person of the morning to point out that the heat index is something like 108. I know what it feels like. I’m right here.

The third summer is the one we’re entering now. It’s hurricane summer.

The height of hurricane season extends from about now until early October. I know the season extends from June through November. We have had tropical storms in June and hurricanes in July.

When those do show up, they’re considered unusual. Now comes the time when the threat of disaster howling out of the tropics and smashing ashore is pretty much a part of everyday life.

You can keep a stock of supplies, things like batteries and canned tuna. You might try to remember where you put the number for that motel where you found a room on Interstate 65 the last time.

Beyond that, most of us can’t do much other than watch the Weather Channel or local news and hope that the meteorologist you see wearing rain gear and pointing out to sea isn’t standing on a familiar beach.

We pray for the best and expect the worst. Sometimes we’ll get lucky. The time will come again when we won’t be lucky.

Until then, we can just accept that the risk is part of life on the Gulf Coast and be happy that the season doesn’t last as long as the rest of summer.

Guy Busby is a writer living in Silverhill. He can be reached at guylbusby@gmail.com and at guybusby.com and liked on Facebook at Guy Busby, writer.